Syria

As the conflict in Syria enters its fourteenth year, humanitarian needs have escalated to unprecedented levels, with 16.7 million people requiring humanitarian assistance. Among them, more than 8 million are women and girls, including 4.1 million of reproductive age. Rates of acute malnutrition are rising among pregnant and breastfeeding women as hunger knocks on the door for more than half the country, with more than 12.9 million people in need of food assistance.

Syria remains one of the largest displacement crises globally, with more than 12 million people forcibly displaced. Over 6.3 million refugees have fled to neighbouring countries, including Türkiye, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. Nearly half of the refugees are women and girls, who face mounting risks of gender-based violence and exploitation and lack access to essential services.

Gender-based violence is pervasive in Syria, and child marriage and digital violence are on the rise.The large number of female-headed households are particularly vulnerable. The conflict has also crippled the health system. Around two thirds of hospitals and half of primary care facilities are out of service, and there has been a massive exodus of health workers. Fifteen million people risk losing access to health and nutrition support due to funding shortages.

Communities in the north-west are still recovering from the impacts of the 2023 earthquakes, while an influx of people fleeing  hostilities in Lebanon could place additional strain on already overstretched basic services and infrastructure.

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UNFPA has been on the ground throughout the crisis. In 2023, UNFPA provided sexual and reproductive health services to more than 1.9 million people and reached over 880,000 people with gender-based violence prevention and response services. 

UNFPA is also supporting health facilities and safe spaces for women and girls, including people fleeing conflict in Lebanon, and is deploying mobile health teams to border points in Rural Damascus, Homs, Tartus and Daraa.

UNFPA is appealing for $145.6 million to fund its humanitarian operations across the region, including the whole of Syria, Türkiye, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. To address the needs of 480,000 people arriving from Lebanon, and host communities in Syria, UNFPA is appealing for $7.5 million.

Updated 1 November 2024

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